The Baltimore Orioles officially introduced new Chief Operating Officer Andy MacPhail at a news conference this morning in a move that was originally announced this past Monday by Buster Olney of ESPN.

Two questions were prominant on the minds of Orioles fans and the media as the news conference took place. Would MacPhail have more control in personnel matters than his previous predecessors and the status of the hunt for the new manager.

When asked whether or not MacPhail thought he had full authority to run the club, he responded "If I didn't feel that way, I wouldn't be here."

That is one concern that was put to rest, for now. Some believed that MacPhail would just be another impediment in negotiations, adding another person for deals to go through. It now appears that MacPhail will be the one making the final decisions, moving Angelos out of that spot.

MacPhail also commented on the ongoing manager search, saying that no official offer had been made after two hours of talks with Joe Girardi yesterday in Chicago.

Sources have told the Baltimore Sun that an offer could be extended to Girardi as early as today.

Two club sources have told the Sun that former coach and player Rick Dempsey could be interviewed for the job today, as well. Currently, Dempsey is in the employ of the Orioles TV network MASN.

MacPhail's goal for this club is to create "an identity, a character" for the Orioles. That is something the Orioles used to have, the 'Oriole Way,' which seemed to have gone by the wayside since Angelos dealt away with Davey Johnson and Pat Gillick.

MacPhail commented on the Orioles pitching and that he thought the club has strong pitching on which to build. The Orioles of years past were built on solid pitching, from Jim Palmer, Mike Flanagan, Scott McGregor and Dave McNally to Mike Mussina, Scott Erickson and Jimmy Key, with a great bullpen that year.

The night before, a new manager could not stop the bleeding, as the Orioles losing streak hit nine games as the club lost to the San Diego Padres 12-6.

Steve Trachsel struggled from the beginning. He loaded the bases without an out in the first inning, but got out of it with a strikeout and a double play.

In the second, Marcus Giles knocked a three-run homer. Khalil Greene hit a solo shot in the fourth and Mike Cameron had an RBI double in the fifth before Trachsel was pulled.

San Diego ace Jake Peavy shut out the Orioles for five innings, but was touched up for three runs in the sixth on a Miguel Tejada RBI base hit and Melvin Mora's single that scored two because of a throwing error.

Peavy also proceded to load the bases, but got out of that jam by striking out catcher Paul Bako to end the inning and to further the Orioles lack of clutch hitting.

In the bottom half of the sixth, the Padres pulled away, torching Oriole relievers Scott Williamson and John Parrish for six runs, amplifying one of the biggest culprits of the season.

Credit must be given to Trembley, who tried to make his mark and shake things up. He pulled Jay Payton in the fifth inning after a throwing error and brought in a reliever in the same inning to replace Trachsel. He also moved Corey Patterson to the second spot in the order for the first time this year, in an effort to put more speed at the top of the order.

However, the Orioles streak continued and Trembley has only a few games to sit in the managers' chair to right this ship for his incoming boss. Just like for Perlozzo, Trembley got little clutch hitting, little help from the bullpen to hold down the Padres and the players showing poor fundamentals. Some things don't change.